"My life was never easy, I always thought the world was against me, but I had someone to watch out for me and made sure that I mattered." - Mordred Pendragon.
Its been a few weeks since Merlin gave Ark a offer he couldn't pass up. So the boy went to train with the Wizard in secret, however as the days went by it was becoming increasingly difficult which was to be expected, but the male had a sneaky suspicion that the wizard was doing it on purpose.
Right now the boy was sleeping peacefully in bed while Mordred was out with Morgan going through more training.
Ark groaned as he was teleported out of bed and landed on the cold smooth ground making him realize once again he was teleported into the castle.
"You're enjoying this aren't you?" Ark said loudly making the person who teleported him here laugh.
"Very." Merlin said as he walked up to the prone Boy who has yet to move. "Still tired?" Ark raised his arm and stuck out the middle finger. "I'll take that as a yes." There was silence before the dick wizard smacked the boy behind the head with his staff. "Sadly we are here to learn not sleep."
"Ass." Ark grumbled as he pushed himself off the floor and looked at the smirking wizard. "Alright, let's start where we left off." Merlin thought for a second before shaking his head.
"No, how about something different." Ark hated the sound of that and only knew that it would lead to frustration and cursing.
"Alright, what are we doing." Ark said with a large amount of reluctance as Merlin simply smirked and summoned a sword making Ark's mouth go dry as the sword gleamed in the light of the room.
"I'm going to teach you that ways of a battle mage... or whatever you call it." Ark groaned already feeling the headache approaching. A battle mage was a very versatile role which can always turn the tides in battle when done correctly.
Ark remembered in his old life when he tried to become a battle mage in Skyrim... the pain he went through on making the character will forever scar him, but the outcome was so worth it.
Now you may ask yourself on how Merlin knows this stuff... well it's pretty obvious since Merlin was the one that brought him here into this new life. You might think Ark was angry at first, but in reality, the boy didn't care.
Sure he missed his old life, but that was long ago. He is here, in this new life which he enjoyed just as much, there are its flaws, but nothing is perfect. So he simply thanked Merlin for the second chance which surprised the wizard a little.
"Alright Merlin what are you teaching me?" The boy dreaded for his life at what might come out of the wizard's mouth.
"Every single spell I know... and maybe a tiny bit of sword practice..."
There was silence... Ark stared at the man while the dick wizard stared back. The boy tried to process this and was failing horribly.
"Y-you're joking right?" Ark asked a bit nervous a he shuffles around. Now the reason the young Pendragon is scared is because he already had a taste of Merlin's training... and sad to say, it was brutal. Now add to the fact that Merlin was willingly going to teach the boy everything he knows... Ark didn't like the scenario he was creating inside his head.
Merlin however just crackled like some sort of evil villian, this only worried Ark even more.
In the first week Merlin taught Ark the Legendary Prana Burst... many, many failed attempts which involves Ark nearly killing himself or slamming into the wall at the lack of control. Ark has still yet to grasp the concept of the Prana Burst, but he was getting there.
The next week were simple spells... thankfully. They were hard to conjure up at first, but with a tiny bit of a helping hand and some tips, Ark figured out how to use small spells and it was coming along nicely. Sooner or later he'll be able to cast very large spells.
And the rest of the week was mostly filled with Ark exercising and training his body. Along with more spelling training and learning.
"To create a large fireball you must imagine the heat, size, and prana you put into it." Merlin explained as Ark stood in the middle of the training room while the wizard circled the young Pendragon. "A mage's creativity is their strongest, but also their weakness." Ark glanced at him as he continued to hold his hand out trying to concentrate.
"So a mage is strong thanks to their creativity?" Ark asked slightly curious before he was smacked on the head once more making him lose his concentrate. The boy groaned as he turned towards Merlin who stopped walking and looked at him.
"Wrong, while it's true that mages are dangerous thanks to their creativity, but it's also their prana reserves that makes them dangerous." Merlin added as he walked over to a table which held a few things that mostly talked about Ark's progress. "Answer me this Ark, if a mage had a lot of creativity, but small prana reserves what does that make them?"
"Useless?" Ark said with a smirk before receiving another smack on the head by Merlin who glared. "Alright..." The boy didn't have to think that hard cause he remembered in Skyrim how if you made your character a mage you had to always level up your mana so you can cast stronger spells. It also required them to think smarter not harder.
Cause if you ran into another mage who was using a ward, how would you take them out. Simple, place a trap and make them walk into it. The ward only protects the enemies front not their back or from under them, however that required a lot of mana...
"While they might have low prana reserves they can still be dangerous cause they will always tried to get the upper hand by doing some underhand tactic." Merlin smiled and nodded his head.
"Ok, what about a mage with high prana reserves, but no creativity?" Ark chuckled cause really he has been that mage before plenty of times. A person who just brute forces everything without thinking or trying to overwhelm him enemies with powerful spells hoping to kill them In one shot.
"While the mage maybe lacking in the creativity department they might try to overwhelm you with powerful spells, however if you are a mage that can think on their feet then you can easily get the drop on them by thinking ahead of them and easily land a blow... that or they might get cocky thinking that they can't get hurt." Merlin raised an eyebrow at how quickly Ark answer these questions, he will become a fine Battle Mage in a few years.
"All excellent answers, while they are not the ones I was looking for, they are still good answers nonetheless." Merlin started walking around Ark again. "Now that we went over that, you have to understand that we need to train your Prana reserves while at the same time training to allow you to think on the move."
"And how will we train in the second part." Merlin simply smirked and summoned his wooden staff. Ark shuffled back slightly as he summoned two small fireballs, one In each hand.
"You'll be sparing with me." Merlin said before launching a very large fireball at him. Ark yelped as he dodged to the side and looked at the damage cause by the fireball which left a large scorch mark on the wall. He looked at the flower Mage with shock and a tiny bit of anger.
"Are you trying to kill!" Ark shouted as he shot a medium size fireball at Merlin who easily blocked the attack with a ward.
"Hhmmm, yes and no." Merlin said smiling as Ark growled. He stomped on the ground making the man jump to the side and dodge a spike from trying to impale him. "We'll do a classic one, come at me with the intent to kill." The boy's eye twitch as he heard that.
"FUCK YOU MERLIN!" Ark sent out a large bolt of lightning before charging forward. Which made Merlin raise an eyebrow at the bold move.
The wizard easily avoided another spike coming out of the ground before tilting his head to the side as a lightning bolt flew by. He easily blocked Ark's sword that he conjured up. It was a simple sword nothing special about it.
Ark sent out a stream of fire trying to catch the wizard off guard, but he was once again disappointed at how Merlin easily casted another Ward to block the flame.
The boy was knocked back and felt his danger senses going off making him raise his sword to block a side slash slash. Ark hissed as his sword easily shattered and a stinging sensation happened on his cheek.
Merlin hummed as the Pendragon jumped back only to send out two more fireballs which the man easily got rid of.
"Come on Ark, I'm not even trying, stop trying to him me and just hit me." Merlin teased making the boy glare at him. Suddenly the boy smirked making the Wizard curious. Ark only pointed at his feet making the man only to hum in approval at what he saw.
Traps, everywhere. He saw fire traps, electricity traps, and Ice traps. Merlin never taught the boy about trap spells so he must of just thought about it, or he kept it hidden from Merlin. Not only that there was a lot of them. He looked to see Ark breathing heavily and looking ready to collapse.
Ark was one stubborn Mage, that was to be expected. The spells the boy pulled off were not simple and looked to take a lot of Prana out of him. So Ark purposely got close so that he can place traps around him. Merlin just that thought he was being annoyed and tried to make it close and personal.
His conjuring spell is mediocre at best, it didn't have enough Prana in it to make it a proper weapon especially since it was dull around the blade and definitely not sharp at all.
Merlin was snapped from his thoughts when he felt a intense heat right in front him making him look to see Ark with two extremely large fireball one in each hand.
The Pendragon looked completely exhausted and ready to fall asleep right then and there.
"Take THIS!" Ark shouted hurling the large balls of fire at the Wizard who hummed with a smile on his face, before he frowned and looked down at the ground.
"I'm going to be getting a major scolding after this aren't I?" Merlin said before sighing as the two balls connected and a large explosion happened causing a massive shockwave.
Ark stumbled back as he fell onto his hands and knees. The boy was breathing heavily as sweat rolled down the side of his head. That... was crazy. He simply thought about the spells back in Skyrim along with the traps and they suddenly popped an idea In his head.
"At least... I got him." However clapping was heard making Ark look to see Merlin walk out of the smoke cloud completely unharmed.
"That was a splendid performance in you spells and holding your own Ark, however I'd give it a 4/10 for your performance." Ark didn't say anything he only collapsed onto the floor completely worn out. The wizard chuckled and held his hand out. A soft green glow happened around his hand and the cut on Ark's cheek healed up, disappearing without a trace.
Merlin crouched down and was about to poke the boy, but the door nearby exploded inwards and a bunch of Knights walked in looking for danger.
"Merlin what is the meaning of all this?" Artoria walked into the room looking around seeing all the damage she then looked at Merlin before noticing the boy on the floor unconscious. "Explain yourself." Artoria started walking towards the boy of for the Wizard to grin as he waved his staff and teleported the boy back home.
Artoria stopped and stared at the man before her who slowly crumbled as she continued to stare at him with her dark green eyes. She wanted to take the boy somewhere away from Merlin, but it seems the Wizard was preventing her from coming close, she wondered why.
"We you see... there was a... gas leak..." Merlin grinned while everyone grew confused at his answer.
"A what?" Artoria said actually a little confused. Merlin only smiled before teleporting away. "MERLIN!"
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Ark gasped as he sat up in bed. A groan escaped his lips at how sore he felt. Fuck Merlin and his training, he was curious on how the wizard trained Artoria, did he do this to her as well?
Stumbling out of his room, a smell entered his nose. It was pleasant and it made his stomach growl. He slowly walked into the main room only to pause at what he saw... Mordred was cooking... that sentence alone would worry many folks.
Taking a few cautious steps forward looking around for Morgan who has yet to appear or be seen. Ark looked at Mordred who still had her back turned to him. He snuck a little closer and started to hear her hum a familiar tune.
That was also concerning, cause only Ark would hum while he cooked. Maybe Mordred was listening to him as she waited for dinner to be served. Ark was quick to realize that Mordred was indeed humming a familiar tune.
It was "Counting Stars" by OneRepublic... one of the many songs that Ark had hummed while cooking dinner. He smiled and as quietly as he could sat down at the table listening to his sister hum as she cooked some food.
Ark slowly closed his eyes and can feel himself slowly drifting to sleep. He knew for a fact that if Mordred caught him she would no doubt beat him to a pulp, but the boy could care less, he hopes to make a difference in the soon to be Knight's life...
The young man felt himself drift into a deep sleep as the sound of his sister humming faded away and then silence.
Mordred turn around and what she saw nearly gave her a heart attack. It was Ark and he was sitting at the table with his eyes closed. She narrowed her eyes thinking he was listening to her hum the song that she heard him hum and that only pissed her off even more.
Cause one, he has been disappearing without a trace for that past month so he didn't make her breakfast which only put more fuel in the fire. And two she had to make breakfast AND dinner for herself...
She marched up to the boy and curled her left hand into a fist. She raised it up with an evil smirk and shot her hand forward... but she stopped near inches from his face.
The boy didn't flinch nor did he move. All he did was move his head slightly to the side. Mordred narrowed her eyes and leaned forward. Ark's breathing was steady and even meaning that he fell asleep.
Mordred lowered her arm and let out a silent huff as she turned away from the sleeping boy. She paused however when the boy shifted slightly and wrapped his arms around the female nearly causing her to scream, but she surprisingly refrained herself from punching the boy...
He just looked so... peaceful. Mordred let out another angry huff. She should just punch him and be done with it, but she couldn't bring herself to do it.
The female pried the male's arms off her and stepped away from him. She looked at the boy again and saw him frowning slightly as he shuffled slightly In his chair.
Mordred looked at the food she cooked which was simple meal, three large chicken breast made with a couple of seasoning that Ark would add nothing too crazy with what Ark can create... she would admit that Ark's teachings did help a bit, but that's all the credit he is going to get from her!
Mordred's face scrunched up as she put one chicken breast on a plate and put the last two on a different plate. She gently nudge the first plate towards Ark while the last plate was placed in front of her spot on the table.
The blond female stood beside Ark and decided to wake him up, she didn't intend to cook for Ark, she was going to eat all the chicken by herself... but it seems she will have to share. Mordred thought about punching the boy awake, but decided against it for once. She looked him over and noticed how dirty his clothes are along with his whole appearance, it appeared he got back from fighting a very large bear.
Mordred reached out and pinched the boy's cheek making him groan and swipe at her hand. The sister fought hard to fight back the smirk that spread across her face and instead replaced it with a scowl.
"Hey, wake up you idiot." Mordred growled as she pinched his face hard and decided to pull for good measure.
"Ah." Ark groaned as he slowly opened his eyes and realized Mordred was looking at him with a scowl. It wouldn't be a surprise if he expected to get punched awake, cause that's the way Mordred woke him up most of the time. "Mordred?" Ark mumbled as he rubbed the sleep out of his eyes.
"Ya it's me." Mordred growled. "Now wake up and eat your food." The female huffed as she walked around the table and sat down to start eating.
"Food?" Ark mumbled as he glanced down and was surprised to a popping hot piece of chicken resting on a plate. He looked at Mordred who continued to eat, but didn't make eye contact with him.
He looked back down and quickly inspected the chicken, it looked decently cooked and it was covered by a couple of familiar seasoning.
"It seems Mordred was listening to me." Ark thought as he grabbed his fork and knife. Cutting a slice of the chicken he saw that it was cooked all the way through and was still a bit steamy. Ark's stomach growled making him take a bit and chew.
Mordred was taking a few peaks at Ark and saw how he inspected the chicken and actually grew a bit nervous. The boy chewed before swallowing. There was silence as Ark didn't move.
"This is pretty good Mordred." The female nearly popped at what Ark said. "I'm sure with enough time and practice you'll become a great cook, of course with my guidance." Ark looked at Mordred and smiled... she stared at him for a few seconds then looked down at her plate fighting back a smile once again.
"T-thanks." Mordred tired really hard not to let her voice give her away. People complimenting her didn't mean anything, but when Ark compliments her she can't help but feel proud.
The siblings ate in silence as Ark enjoyed Mordred's cooking. It wasn't crazy good, but it's the effort she puts into it that makes it delicious. He started to wonder if Mordred ever looked up to him even though she is technically the older sibling... probably not.
"Ark." The boy blinked and looked at his sister to see her staring at him.
"Ya Mordred." The female looked to be thinking over her words for a second.
"Where have you gone this past week?" Ark paused and hesitated. He was debating if he should tell Mordred where he has been going, but he was kind of worried that Morgan was here and listening, he hopes she wasn't...
"I've been..." Ark paused and looked around looking to see if he can spot Morgan watching from within the shadows, it was now or never. "Training." Mordred paused and stared at her brother.
"You've been training..." Mordred said looking at him with a completely blank stare that he has always give her.
"Remember when the King and Merlin came by." Ark didn't wait for a response. "Merlin offered to train me into becoming a Mage... I-"
Mordred slammed her fist on the table making the boy jump slightly since he kind of expected this.
"You've been training... behind my back!" Mordred growled as she stood up glared at her brother who growled and stood up too.
"Ya, is there an issue?" Ark narrowed his eyes, he wasn't going to back down from whatever Mordred was going to say.
"Yes, your training behind my back and didn't tell me!" Mordred said while Ark grit his teeth.
"Why would I need to tell you! Morgan has been training you into becoming a Knight." Mordred's hands balled up looking ready to beat her brother.
"That's not the point!" Mordred shouted as she leaned forward on the table making Ark do the same and as they glare at each other. "Why do you need to train, you have me, I can protect you!" Ark held back a annoyed groan.
"I don't need you to protect me, I can protect myself just fine." Ark said calmly trying to restrain his anger unlike Mordred who looked ready to explode.
"Ya right, I can easily beat you without a problem, I highly doubt you can defend yourself." Mordred scoffed.
"What the FUCK is your deal with me training, I WANT to do this, what are you so afraid of that could cause you to lose your cool over this." Mordred was at her breaking point and the only thing she could do was let it out.
"You want to know why I'm acting this way..." There was silence as Mordred lowered her head as her body trembling and a tiny sound left her lips. She growled and let it rip. "IT'S BECAUSE I DON'T WANT YOU TO PUSH ME AWAY AND FORGET ABOUT ME WHILE YOU'RE OFF TRANING TO BE WHATEVER THE FUCK MERLIN IS TRYING TO TURN YOU INTO!" Mordred shouted as she stared at Ark who saw real god forsaken tears rolling down her cheek... the face she was making was something nobody can't unsee... this wasn't the outcome Ark expected to see from Mordred of all the people... did... he effect her life that much?
Then for some reason Ark got mad and grit his teeth. He marched around the table and glared at Mordred who tired to stop crying and put on her usual brave face, but she shouldn't...
"What... the FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU!" Mordred flinched and lowered her head not wanting to see his face. "WHAT KIND OF BROTHER DO YOU TAKE ME FOR, I WOULD NEVER DO THAT TO YOU, WE LITERALLY HAD THIS CONVERSATION LAST MONTH!" Mordred only curled up In her seat. But Ark was far from done. "YOU'RE MY SISTER MORDRED, YOU'RE FUCKING FAMILY, THE ONLY FAMILY MEMBER THAT I FUCKING CARE ABOUT." Ark was losing his voice over this shouting, but he didn't care, he needed to get this through Mordred's thick skull. "NOW DON'T YOU EVER SAY OR THINK LIKE THAT AGAIN!"
Ark looked at Mordred who was softly whimpering as she curled up into a ball. The boy didn't think Mordred can get this way especially with brash she usually acts... so seeing her like this was slightly disturbing. "NOW LOOK AT ME MORDRED." She didn't move her head. "I SAID LOOK AT ME MOMO!" This time Mordred did lift her head showing Ark her puffy green eyes and tear full face.
There were no words spoke between us as we just stared at each other. Ark's hard green eyes looking at Mordred. This was the Knight of Treachery just yet, this was a girl who is deathly scared of losing some that she finds valuable and precious.
A brother that cares about her.
Mordred lunged forward and hugged Ark crying into his shoulder. The boy didn't hesitate to hug her back only making the female cry harder. Neither talked or spoke a word as they hugged each other.
"I will never push you away Mordred. You are my sister, we siblings stick together... until the very end."